Control
by Anonymous Echo
Summary: Brief intermission moment between William and X.A.N.A.


**Just a little Code Lyoko love. I always adored X.A.N.A., wish he went out at the end of the series like he deserved, was far too quick of an ending. Anywho, here's some goodness from my Deviantart page. This section of the site needs some loving.**

_"To control is to have power, and to have power you must have the need to aspire, to become better than what you once were. To become something more, not just for yourself but also against any enemy that may stand to try and bar your way. Trust me, there will be enemies... Plenty of them."_

A screech tore through the area, wheezing, and the labored pants of pain. The boy's eyes flickered in every direction, fear, pain, defiance looming within the whites of his gaze that seemed to illuminate against his pale skin. On all fours he choked, fingers curling into the white floor as he lurched forward painfully. Every breath hurt, it was to the point tears were spilling past his eyelids and racing down his cheeks. This was not what he signed up for; this wasn't what he was expecting to find when he agreed to join. Especially when he did it all for her. His black locks dangled, as if numb, and so badly he wished, just fucking wished that he could be numb. For this pain was unlike anything he had felt before, nothing from his world could ever cause such a violent, but here it was different. Here was where he was. The pretender, the God of Lyoko.

And how he desperately wished to see him dead.

Another scream tore past his lips, again he tried to muffle the sound but it proved futile each and every time. Not when this thing was tearing his very being apart, just to manipulate him once more. He had gone through this since the possession, and every time he was back at X.A.N.A.'s base he found himself pulling away, defying once more. But it was difficult, the AI was like a difficult tooth that refused to just be yanked out, and every time he had tried to tear the pest from his being the roots were there just to keep the monster tied in. He refused to give in, not when he finally got here, got them to trust him just enough to help. First day of the job, first fucking day and he found himself in the clutches of their enemy. Of the world's enemy.

He could remember each of their faces, as he appeared to do battle, to try and thwart their plans on countering the puppet master's. They were stricken with horror, sadness upon seeing him imprinted with the symbol of their most hateful. But it did not stop them; they knew their duties as warriors. And as much as it killed him on the inside he could not show it, only watch as his body moved upon its own accord to try and hack them to pieces. He was screaming on the inside every time his blade stabbed through her, even through his rival, and that hyperactive nut-job. But he smiled, dare he say in the presence of X.A.N.A., when they succeeded. When he found himself back at his master's headquarters. And again he would try and pull away, when that machine was trying to locate a counter method. But it only lasted so long, for that AI was more than what the warriors believed him to be. He comes back, right before a mission, his inky-like figure hauntingly before his own. And that monster, that fucking monster who just consume him once more. All that pain, struggle, it was wiped clean and once more he was just a vessel.

William hated it.

He hated X.A.N.A.

He was beginning to hate himself.

Not strong enough. He wasn't strong enough to continue resisting, he knew. Every time he did his struggle became shorter and shorter. And not, right now, he realized just how tired he truly was. His form, crumpled upon the bright white floor, the symbol of the enemy glowing beneath where he laid. The struggle was coming to an end, he knew, and he never felt more pathetic in his life. It was almost embarrassing how weak he truly was, compared to them, compared to what he imagined himself to be.

But there was only one other in the entire world, in his entire existence, which would ever know that truth.

His onyx eyes turned up to meet the hovering figure, the always-moving blob of smoke that glided within the enormous building like he was God of this world. X.A.N.A. was his name, or its name, William lost track a long time ago. All he knew was it was time form a mission, and he was out of defiance. The monster hissed, it was as if static was booming across a television or radio. Low and crackling, but deep, so deep, like his menacing voice was. **"Rise."** The thing ordered, but he did not, could not. This place was sucking the life clean out of him, feeding the AI's need for control.

"Just put me out of my misery, you monster!" He choked out, glaring up at him with the utmost hate. But X.A.N.A. did not respond, at least not vocally, rather his head slowly tilted to the right. It was an extremely human gesture, the way he did it at least. It did not fit the program at all. Such a thing brought a reaction out of the boy, fear, a primal sort, for his mind began to whirl at the idea of X.A.N.A. possessing some basic human traits. It was impossible, and yet he could easily remember feeling the amusement, excitement, the anger of his current master. AI, Artificial Intelligence, did that include some kind of understanding and comprehension of the basic human emotions, he wondered.

No.

It did not.

His answer came when the clawed hand grabbed his uniform and yanked him to his feet, another low hiss coming from the machine. But then something unusual happened, the thing's mouth curved upwards in what could only be associated as a smile. A menacing one, at that. Head straightened he leered forward which only made William's heart race even faster, the aching in his chest intensifying. **"As you wish."** X.A.N.A. rumbled, the claw gripping his uniform now sinking inside, past the fabric and flesh, and into his very core being. Pain, it ignited stronger than any; it felt as if time had been stretched out just to accommodate to it. To allow poor William no peace at all. His vision blurred, the looming machine before him slowly vanishing into his being. Only this time it was different, this time he wasn't going to wake back up. He knew it, he could feel it, see it as blackness began to cover over his eyes. The AI managed to do something right, at least on William's end. But for X.A.N.A.'s he knew it was just for absolute dominance. For some reason it didn't help make him feel any better, for the pain was no longer physical, but emotional, mental. Not that it would last, as his eyes began to only see blackness. Consciousness drifting into space, shutting down completely.

The creature, now harboring a submissive vessel, extended out his hand. Fingers curling inwards to grip around the handle of a forming blade, large and sinister in its making. Features more defined it was easy to see the fleshy lips pull back into a wicked grin, his eyes of onyx pulsing with the sign of the warrior's enemy. The sign of the God of Lyoko.

_"Control, its perfection only formed by the one with an absolute need for it. By someone, or something, that is able to take their existence and crush it again and again, to mold it into something new after each and every failure. By a being that expects victory, but plans for failure. By one that will bide time waiting for the most ideal soldier to submit, so that very being may become one with them."_


End file.
